Eighteen
by captainpezberry
Summary: Based on the AU where a tattoo of your soulmate's first words to you appear on your skin on your eighteenth birthday. It's Paige's eighteenth birthday and she's trying desperately to figure out who the new words scrawled on her body would come from. Totally AU. Includes a nice McHastings friendship.


Paige stretched as a yawn ripped through her body. She was fighting waking up but the sunlight beaming through her curtains was winning that war. She groaned and rolled over, pulling the pillow over her head, and squeezing her eyes shut to try for just a few more minutes of sleep. Then, like a wave washing over her, realization hit and she quickly lifted her head, causing the pillow to tumble to the floor.

"Eighteen" She whispered, looking around her bedroom as if waiting for confirmation from a source that wasn't there. A smile came to her lips regardless of the silence she was greeted with from the inanimate objects in her room. She pushed off the bed, rolled over, put her feet on the ground, and nodded "Eighteen."

She immediately moved over to the body length mirror near her closet and started to lift the material of the clothes she had slept in. She searched near back, her ribs, the backs of her legs, and even the back of her neck. She frowned when nothing seemed out of the ordinary. She let out a sigh and dropped her hands to her side, staring at herself in the mirror with discontent on her face "Where are you?"

"Breakfast!" Mrs. McCullers called up from downstairs and Paige turned toward her bedroom door.

"Be right down!" She answered back then turned to look back at the mirror. Her brows creased and she shook her head, using her hand to push the mirror away from her as if it had offended her before turning and heading toward the stairs.

"There she is!" Mrs. McCullers greeted her daughter with a bright smile as she moved a plate of food over to the place setting at the table. "Happy Birthday, baby girl. How do you feel?"

"Like I didn't get enough sleep" Paige mumbled as she plopped down into the seat at the table and immediately reached for the juice that had been set out for her.

Mrs. McCullers waved both hands at her and let out a soft laugh "You always say that. I meant how do you feel about being eighteen? Has it appeared yet?"

Paige just shook her head, not even lifting her eyes to look at her mom. She was afraid there would be disappointment in her mother's eyes as if it was her fault.

"Oh honey it will come" Mrs. McCullers moved to her daughter and lightly put a hand on her shoulder "Don't you-"

"Ouch" Paige hissed at the touch from her mother, jerking herself away from her. Both girls looked a little shocked at the action but the shock faded to delight at the realization of what the pain meant.

"Well take a look!" Mrs. McCullers smiled brightly and clasped her hands together to fight her excitement.

Paige was suddenly nervous. She bit her lip and looked over to her left shoulder cautiously. This was it. There was no turning back now. As soon as she pulled back the collar of her shirt and read the script on her skin she would know when she met her soulmate. She took a deep breath and lifted her right hand to the collar of her shirt but hesitated in pulling it back.

"You're okay" Mrs. McCullers nodded with a loving smile. "I know it's a little scary but it's not so bad. You have to look, Paige. You have to know what it says."

Paige licked her lips and gave a timid nod before her eyes dropped back to her shoulder. She swallowed hard and slowly gripped the material of her shirt. With a slight wince as the material pressed against the nearly formed words on her flesh, she slowly pulled her collar back until she could see the black ink seemingly glowing up at her. The words were scrawled along the top ridge of her shoulder leading from her neck to where her arm curved down into her tricep. Her heart gave a bit of a flip as she read the words over softly in her mind:

I'm so sorry. Kickball just isn't my sport.

The words echoed around her mind. Though this was her first time seeing the words printed across her skin she had a feeling it wasn't the first time these words had come to her in one way or another.

"Kickball?" Paige's mother's head was tilted to the side so she could read the words on her daughter's shoulder. She shook her head a little bit and looked up at Paige with a little shrug "Looks like you need to join a kickball team!"

Paige blinked and looked up at her mom with a slight nod. She didn't really know what to say. Suddenly the first words her soulmate will ever say to her were printed on her skin and as different as she thought she might feel, she didn't. She felt the same. She felt a little nauseous about it, but mostly like the same old Paige she had always been. So far being eighteen was not as exciting and life altering as she thought it would be.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

"So?" Spencer came up behind Paige in the hallway and smiled as she caught her friend's eyes.

"What?" Paige just shrugged as she stopped at her locker and started putting in her combination.

"Oh come on" Spencer rolled her eyes and leaned into the locker next to her, watching Paige so obviously avoiding the subject of the soulmate tattoo.

Paige just shook her head as the locker popped open and she started to put books away and pull out new ones. "It's weird, Spence. Everyone acts like it's this huge revelation but I don't get it."

"Well what did it say?" Spencer frowned at how disappointed Paige seemed to be. "Can I see it?"

Paige just glanced at Spencer with a bit of annoyance in her eyes but when it looked like her friend wasn't going to take no for an answer, she let out a heavy sigh and pulled the collar of the button up she wore that day open to show off her shoulder.

"Gnarly placement" Spencer said with a nod, noticing that Paige's bra strap laid right over the words. "Does it hurt?" She gently tried to read the words while not hurting Paige by moving the strap in the process.

"Kind of like when you get a sunburn that only hurts when you scratch it" Paige shrugged her shoulder into Spencer's hand which caused her to hiss with pain "Like so" She grunted through her teeth.

"Sorry" Spencer frowned as her eyes took in the script. Her eyebrows knitted together in confusion and she shook her head "Kickball? You don't even play kickball."

"Well apparently my soulmate does" Paige mumbled and pulled her shirt over her shoulder again.

"Better join a league" Spencer said with a soft laugh as she adjusted the strap of her bag over her shoulder.

"You sound like my mom" Paige mumbled as she slammed her locker and put her bag strap over her right shoulder to avoid another rush of pain.

"Well" Spencer shrugged as the girls turned and headed down the hallway together "The point of the tattoo is kind of to find your soulmate and, you know, live your life together."

"That doesn't mean I have to get married right now. I'm still in high school, I'm barely eighteen, and I have Stanford to look forward to" Paige stopped outside her class and looked at her friend with another shrug "I'm in no hurry."

"Whatever" Spencer rolled her eyes and offered a wave "I'll see you at lunch."

"See ya" Paige returned the wave and watched her friend walk off before she turned to head to her seat. She was already annoyed and it was only first period. She didn't know how she was going to make it through the day with people constantly asking about her tattoo.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Paige was in the library during second period when a voice drew her from the book she was looking through. She smiled immediately, before her eyes even found the source, because she knew exactly who it was. When her eyes finally caught up with her brain and fell upon the girl standing just a few feet away at the counter, her heart gave a flutter. Emily Fields kind of always had that effect on her.

"It's been out for weeks" Emily frowned as she leaned into the counter near the librarian. "Who has it? Can't you call them down here and make them give it back? I really need that book."

"I'm sorry" The librarian shrugged and gave her head a shake. "They haven't had it the maximum amount of time so I can't do anything about it. You will just have to check back later."

Emily let out a disappointed sigh "Well thanks anyway. Have a nice day" She mumbled as she turned away from the counter. Just then her eyes fell on Paige who had been watching the exchange and she lifted her hand to give her a wave "Hey."

Paige smiled and offered a return wave "What book are you looking for?"

Emily took a few steps toward Paige and stuffed her hands in her pockets as she shrugged and looked down at the girl who was sitting on one of the couches below her "To Kill A Mockingbird. You'd think they would have more than one copy in this stinking library."

"You'd think" Paige smiled then scooted over on the couch before reaching out to pat the cushion next to her.

Emily slipped her bag from her shoulder as she turned and gently dropped onto the couch next to Paige without hesitation. They had always been close. Between swimming and Spencer the two of them spent a lot of time together. They hadn't really started out as immediate friends but they had grown close quickly and soon they were talking to each other and not just through their friends.

Paige had been digging in her bag for a moment or two while Emily sat and adjusted on the couch next to her. When she finally found what she was searching for, she grinned and straightened up. She produced the book that Emily had been looking for and offered it to her "Take mine. I've read it probably a hundred times."

"You just carry this around with you at all times?" Emily perked an eyebrow curiously as she took the book from her.

She knew Emily was in Mr. Fitz's class and she knew he had them studying American classics that semester. So she had put it in her bag in the off chance that Emily would need it one day. You know, just because that's what friends did for each other. "Yeah" Paige answered casually with a smile "It's one of my favorites."

Emily looked at the book and gave an impressed nod before smiling "Thanks."

"No problem." Paige stood now from the couch after gathering the books she had been looking through before Emily had joined her. "Take your time with it. Like I said, I've read it a hundred times so I won't miss it."

Emily nodded and looked up at Paige where she stood. Paige was always doing little things like that for her, it seemed. She always had the answer. She always had extra lunch vouchers just in case she forgot hers. She always had an extra apple after the swim meets for her. She was always willing to walk Emily home whenever her car didn't start, which was fairly often. "Thanks" Emily said again, a little humbled now at the gestures over the years.

"Don't mention it" Paige waved her off then turned to leave. She paused though when she heard Emily say her name. She hesitated a moment before turning around, sure she knew what Emily was about to ask. But she put on a smile and turned anyway "Yeah?"

"Happy birthday" Emily said with a genuine smile. "I got you something but Spencer made me promise not to give it to you until the party tonight."

Paige's heart did a flip. Emily Fields had gotten her a gift? Not that it was completely off the wall to think it was possible, they were friends after all, but the fact that it had actually happened gave Paige a little flutter. She managed to smile though and offer a nod "You didn't have to do that."

"It's nothing huge" Emily assured her with a shrug. "Besides, you got me something on my birthday so it's only fair."

Paige smiled softly and nodded. She had been so nervous Emily would think it was weird that she had gotten her a gift but she hadn't. She had been so delighted about it she had thanked Paige about fifty times in one hour. Paige had gone home that night with a smile on her lips that didn't fade until morning "Well thank you, in advanced."

"Don't thank me yet. You haven't seen what it is" Emily let out a soft laugh and tucked the book Paige had given her into her bag before standing.

"I'm sure whatever it is will be amazing" Paige shrugged and waited for Emily to stand before she motioned toward the library exit. "It will have to wait, though. Education calls."

Emily let out a laugh and nodded, motioning for Paige to lead the way as they wove their way through the library and back out into the hall. Once out in the crowd, they exchanged a wave then parted ways. Emily bit her lip as she headed to her next class. She had wanted to ask about the tattoo but if Paige was anything like she had been on her own eighteenth birthday, being asked about it would only annoy her. So she figured she would wait until Paige wanted to share the information with her.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Paige was sitting in her last class of the day, not paying attention, her gaze out the window. She couldn't wait to get out of class, go to swim practice, then go home and start celebrating her birthday. Luckily no one else had asked about her tattoo so her annoyance had faded and been replaced with excitement. She was sure Spencer had something huge planned since she was the last of the group to turn eighteen.

She was deep in thought about the party when her hand moved to itch at her shoulder and was greeted with a sharp sting. She quickly sucked air through her teeth and straightened up to look over at her shoulder. She had totally forgotten about it. She pulled the collar open again and looked at the tiny script on her shoulder. She shook her head and let out a sigh. Kickball? She didn't know anyone who played kickball. In fact she hadn't seen anyone playing kickball since like the fifth grade.

Then it hit her.

Fifth grade. She was ten. It was a nice day out, one of the first nice days of the spring, and the kids were all wildly rambunctious. This was one of the first days they had been aloud to take recess outside since winter had set in. Paige was one of the quiet kids, one who kept to herself at recess, and kind of just stuck to the shadows. That day she had a brand new book, brand new shoes, and a new favorite hiding spot near the fence to sit and read for the duration of recess.

She was crossing the far end of the field where kids were all playing various games. Soccer was going on at one end, a game of freeze tag toward the middle, and on the end nearest her a game of kickball had started up. She glanced over at the kids running around and just shook her head. She was not interested in sports, aside from swimming. She wished they had a pool she could swim in for recess instead.

Just as her eyes had shifted to look at the cover of her new book, she heard a loud yell to her left "Heads up!"

It's stupid that people yell that. Because instead of ducking at the call most people look up to see what's coming and from where. Just as Paige turned her head in the direction of the warning she was smacked in the side of the face by a big, red, rubber kickball.

The next thing she knew she was surrounded by kids. All of them were mumbling, some of them giggling, but most of them concerned. Anytime any kid got hit in the head it was a big deal.

"She's awake" One kid mumbled.

"Make her sit up" Another said as they grabbed for her hand to pull her upright.

Once Paige was sitting, she reached for her cheek and rubbed. She was greeted with a sore tingle where her fingers touched but there wasn't much more pain involved. Just as she started putting together what had happened, a shy girl pushed her way through the crowd and knelt in front of Paige with a frown.

"I'm so sorry. Kickball just isn't my sport."

Paige looked at the girl, who was staring at her in half horror and half relief that Paige wasn't dead, and just nodded. "Yeah. Maybe you should try swimming instead."

Emily Fields giggled at that and offered her hand to the girl. She helped her up to her feet, brushed off her pants, then looked up at her with apologetic eyes "Are you okay?"

"Perfect" Paige had whispered.

Paige licked her lips as the memory faded and her hand lifted to her cheek. She could feel the dull ache as if the ball had just hit her in the face all over again. She smiled against her own touch and nodded a little bit "Perfect" She repeated. She had just realized who her soulmate was.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

"Happy birthday!" The gathering of friends hollered as Paige walked into the Hastings' backyard. There were strings of lights decorating the trees and porch. Long tables filled with all of Paige's favorite foods were spread out around the yard. The group of kids that had joined to celebrate Paige's birthday were all smiling at the guest of honor.

Paige just smiled shyly and dropped her head to look at her feet. She shrugged and gave a quick flail of her hand in an attempt to wave away all of the happy birthdays coming her way. "Stop, stop" Paige finally looked up at the group, blushing softly. "Go on about your lives."

There was a laugh from the group and then, as Paige had wished, they seemed to go on with their lives. Chatter lifted from the group and people broke off to mingle and eat. Spencer came rushing over to Paige and slid her arm around her shoulders with a grin "Okay, so, I invited pretty much the whole class and a lot of them showed up. So, go talk to them about kickball!"

"Oh my god" Paige said with a laugh and pushed Spencer away. She looked at her friend's face and knew she was teasing but that didn't stop Paige from rolling her eyes "You are more excited about this than I am."

"Well someone has to be" Spencer said with a nudge to her shoulder. "Besides, I've never seen you date anyone. I am excited to see you put yourself out there."

"I'm not going to become some serial dater" Paige rolled her eyes again and moved to the table with the snacks. She had come straight from swim practice and was starving. "If the first thing out of their mouth isn't about kickball I will know they aren't the one."

"True" Spencer shrugged and watched Paige load up her plate. "I just want to see you go on one date. I was almost surprised that words showed up today. I was almost sure you were meant to die alone with your books."

"Shut up" Paige let out a laugh and shoved Spencer playfully. She knew Spencer was just teasing her. Spencer teased her a lot. It was kind of the basis of their friendship. But she liked it. She knew it meant Spencer cared.

"Happy birthday" A soft voice came from behind Paige and she turned to find the source. Her heart jumped and she nearly dropped her plate when she found Emily Fields standing behind her.

"Oh" Paige swallowed and tried to smile "Hey. Thank you. You came. I'm glad you came."

"I told you I'd be here, silly" Emily said with a soft laugh. She looked the girl over and noticed she seemed a little nervous, maybe even uncomfortable, and her smile faded. "Are you okay?"

"Fine" Paige said quickly. She pushed the corners of her mouth up into an over dramatic smile and nodded "Do you want some snacks?"

Emily eyed the girl again and decided not to ask. She just smiled and took one of the little sandwiches off Paige's plate with a nod "Thanks, Paige." She kept her eyes on her for a moment before they shifted and she looked around the party. She grinned and lifted her hand in a wave when someone caught her attention "I'm going to go say hi to Hanna. We'll catch up later though, alright?"

"Right" Paige nodded quickly and turned as Emily walked away from her. She watched her go until she disappeared into the crowd. Once she was gone, Paige's eyes closed and she let out a heavy sigh. God could she have been more embarrassing?

"What was that?" Spencer, who had been standing there the entire time, laughed and pointed over her shoulder to were Emily had disappeared.

Paige just shook her head and looked at her plate of food "Nothing."

Spencer just perked an eyebrow at her friend then shook her head "Whatever. Let's go say hi to everyone." Before Paige could argue, Spencer had hold of her arm and was tugging her through the crowd. It was her birthday, after all, she should be polite and thank everyone for coming.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Paige sat on one of the benches tucked under the snack table. She was on the edge, her eyes out over the yard, watching everyone mingle. A smile came to her lips. She was pretty lucky to have all these people show up even if some of them only came because Spencer had invited them and not just because it was her birthday.

"What you thinking about?" Emily said softly, not wanting to startle Paige as she sat down next to her.

Paige jumped and turned quickly to look at Emily next to her. She let out a laugh and shook her head "You should wear a bell! I almost had a heart attack."

"Sorry" Emily blushed and looked down quickly. In that moment she looked like the younger version of herself apologizing for hitting Paige with a kickball.

Paige felt her heart flutter at the look on Emily's face. It was funny how much she had grown yet how she still looked exactly the same. "It's okay" Paige finally said with a nod "I'm young, I think I will recover."

"Oh good. The coach would be so mad if I killed the star swimmer" Emily offered her a little smile and shook her head.

"Oh please we both know you're the star" Paige rolled her eyes and gave her a playful nudge.

Emily just blushed again and shrugged her shoulders. She stared at Paige happily as silence fell between them and they just held each other's gazes for a few moments. When she finally decided to break the silence, a sigh let her lips "So do you want your gift now?"

"It's not time for gifts" Paige mocked Spencer's tone as she motioned to the table across the yard where all of the gifts had been stacked. There weren't a lot and most of them were probably from Spencer and the other girls but that was just fine by Paige.

"I think Spencer will forgive me" Emily said with a little shrug, her eyes still on Paige.

When Paige looked back at Emily, she caught her eyes, and her breath hitched in her throat. There was something behind the way Emily was looking at her and it made her nervous. She was suddenly hyper aware of herself and she nervously pulled at her fingers as she eyed Emily carefully "Um, yeah. I guess if you insist."

Emily's gaze softened and she nodded softly. A smile came to her lips and she glanced around quickly to make sure no one was looking before she leaned back a bit. She lifted her shirt and pushed the waistband of her jeans down until the familiar black script could be seen.

Paige's eyes went wide when Emily all of the sudden seemed to be moving to expose herself. But when she saw the black writing on Emily's skin, she let out the breath she had been holding and laughed softly "Your tattoo is my gift?" She looked up at her curiously and shook her head "I don't get it."

"Read it" Emily said with a nod, using her eyes to glance down a few times as if trying to guide Paige's eyes down as well.

Paige, still hyper aware of herself and trying not to focus on the face that Emily's hipbone was exposed to her, nodded and looked down again. She licked her lips and leaned in a bit, squinting to try and focus on the tiny blank words. It took her a moment to figure them out since she didn't want to lean too close to Emily but when she did, she still didn't get it. "Don't worry, you can have mine" She read out softly then looked up at Emily with a shake of her head.

Emily nodded and gave her a smile before dropping her shirt and letting her jeans slide back over her hip. She watched Paige's face as she processed the words and wondered if they at all sounded familiar.

They didn't. Paige had sat up from how she had leaned over Emily and just shook her head again. Her brows creased together as she thought it over. She had remembered earlier that day the first words her and Emily had exchanged. Emily had apologized for the kickball and Paige had suggested she try swimming. So if Emily's tattoo said this then that must mean Paige wasn't her soulmate. But how was that possible?

"Paige?" Emily whispered, frowning in concern at the look on Paige's face. She looked half panicked and half distraught.

"Huh?" Paige shook her head and blinked away the memory from fifth grade again as she looked up at Emily.

Emily let out a soft laugh and gave her a shrug "Don't you remember?"

"Remember what?" Paige asked softly, her head shaking again.

"Second grade" Emily let out a deflated sigh as her shoulders slumped in disappointment when Paige didn't seem to get it. "We were on the second grade field trip to the Liberty Bell and it was lunch time. We all had to sit with our classes so we wouldn't get lost. Some kid in my class was goofing around and knocked into me, causing me to drop my milk that I had just opened. You were walking by with your lunch and saw the whole thing. Without even missing a beat you looked at me, smiled, handed me your milk and said that."

Paige blinked just once. Suddenly the memory rushed back. She couldn't believe Emily remembered that. It was such a vague statement and when it appeared on Emily it literally could have been anyone saying that to her. Yet for some reason she thought it was that moment in time that her tattoo was referring to. Paige smiled softly and finally looked up to focus on Emily "I barely remember that. We weren't even in the same class. But, I don't know, I felt it was right to give you my milk. My mom had packed me a lunch anyway so I didn't need the one the school provided."

Emily smiled widely as Paige finally recalled the moment she was talking about. She nodded quickly and reached out to put a hand on her leg "I've been waiting to show you this ever since I got mine. I wanted to wait for today so you would know for sure." She bit her lip almost nervously now and after taking a deep breath asked what she had been avoiding asking all day "Your tattoo is from me, right? The words, I mean?"

Paige was completely shocked. She had forgotten about the entire thing in second grade. It had happened so quickly, without thought, that Paige hadn't even registered that it had been Emily. She thought the first time she had ever met Emily was the day she hit her in the face with the kickball in fifth grade. Paige let out a soft laugh and nodded her head "Yeah but from a totally different moment."

Emily perked an eyebrow at this. For some reason it surprised her to hear even if, when she thought about it, she realized she hadn't said anything to Paige that day in second grade. "What does it say?"

Paige smiled nervously and looked at her shoulder. She took in a deep breath and reached over to pull her collar open. She shrugged until the shirt was tucked down around her shoulder blade and leaned over to let Emily read the words.

Emily's eyes scanned the ink a few times. She smiled very slowly before finally looking up at Paige and letting a laugh escape "When I hit you in the head with a kickball?"

Paige let out a laugh and pulled the collar back over her shoulder "Yeah. That's when I suggested you try swimming instead."

Emily let out a soft laugh at the memory and nodded slightly "A great suggestion if I say so myself."

"I think so too" Paige grinned. She caught the way Emily's smile lingered on her lips as their eyes met and she felt her heart flutter. She had to look away. The honesty of the moment they were sharing was too much. This was it. This girl sitting next to her was the person she was meant to be with. She wasn't nervous about it, though, strangely enough. It was a different feeling. An excitement. She realized in this moment that everything between she and Emily made sense now. Their connection, their friendship, their ability to get along so easily. It all made sense and it put Paige at ease.

"So" Emily said softly, breaking the silence that had fallen between them.

Paige looked up at her and shrugged, a smile still holding on her lips as she looked deep into Emily's eyes "So" she repeated with a nod of her head.

"Time for cake and presents!" Spencer called loudly, drawing everyone's attention to her. She turned her head and found where Paige was sitting and smiled, motioning with her arm for Paige to come join her. "Get over here!"

Paige let out a laugh and stood up from the bench. She looked down at Emily and shrugged "Can't keep a Hastings waiting." She reached out and offered her hand down to Emily with a calming smile on her lips.

Emily nodded quickly and slid her hand into Paige's and, though it was the first time, their hands closed around the other and it felt like home.


End file.
